Chapter 586

Purple Sandpiper stepped toward him, lowering her voice: "Was the ship's sinking really your scheme?"

Hu Xiaotian shrank his neck in fright, lowering his voice: "Princess, you must not speak recklessly; if outsiders hear this, I, Xiaotian, fear even jumping into the Yong River wouldn't clear my name."

Purple Sandpiper said: "Hu Xiaotian, by now you needn't act in front of me; you had me change into the princess's clothes, clearly intending to make me her scapegoat. You actually already knew something would happen when crossing the river, didn't you? So you set this trap, wanting to use my death to cover your tracks."

Hu Xiaotian said: "If the Princess thinks that way, this humble one can do nothing."

Purple Sandpiper said resentfully: "Letting me stand in for the princess is fine enough; when did I ever say no? But after the sinking, you sent people to kill me? If not for my great fate, I would already be dead at the hands of you, this traitor."

Hu Xiaotian gave a bitter smile: "Heaven and Earth Conscience, I, Xiaotian, have never had anyone do such a thing; I swear to heaven!" He secretly wondered, could it be Elder Brother Zhou and Display Peng who did it? Killing her would be fine, and wouldn't cause so much trouble.

Purple Sandpiper said: "What conscience does a cold-blooded, selfish person like you have? You should have been on the same boat with us; why did you change your mind before boarding?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "I changed my mind because Wen Boyuan's behavior was suspicious; to protect the princess, I had no choice but to take this measure—you should know about his affairs."

Purple Sandpiper snapped: "How would I know?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "All along you've been exchanging glances with him; don't think I don't know what you two are plotting."

Purple Sandpiper glared at Hu Xiaotian: "You're spouting nonsense, smearing my purity; I've hardly exchanged a word with him."

Hu Xiaotian smiled faintly: "Whether you spoke or not, it doesn't matter; Wen Boyuan harbors sinister intentions, plotting to harm the princess. That's why he didn't board the same boat as her—regardless of whether you're involved, he never considered your life or death."

Purple Sandpiper said: "You're no different; in your hearts, you never gave a thought to the life of someone insignificant like me."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Man proposes, heaven disposes; Wen Boyuan schemed to harm the princess, unaware that a mantis stalks the cicada, with the oriole behind. Moreover, someone wants to wipe us all out in one sweep."

Purple Sandpiper snorted: "You're that oriole."

Hu Xiaotian shook his head: "I'm not that oriole; we're all grasshoppers tied to the same rope. Now we can only go along with the mistake; if they see through your identity, none of us will survive."

Purple Sandpiper said: "This life of mine was picked up; life and death have long been irrelevant to me."

Hu Xiaotian said: "Better a shameless life than a noble death. Whoever has a chance to live doesn't want to die. Princess, perhaps we had some misunderstandings before, but since everything has passed, we both were fortunate to survive. There's no reason to keep unpleasant things in mind. What matters most now is that we cooperate sincerely to overcome the crisis."

Purple Sandpiper said: "Do you think you can fool everyone under heaven?"

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "To deceive for a moment is for a moment; to deceive for a lifetime is for a lifetime. If we can keep it hidden forever, the Princess could peacefully remain in Da Yong as a prince's consort; someday she might even become the crown princess, or even the empress of Da Yong, enjoying endless wealth and honor. By then, perhaps her heart will be filled with gratitude toward me."

Purple Sandpiper said: "If the matter is exposed, I fear there will be no place for us in the vast world." Being able to say this shows she has been moved by Hu Xiaotian's words.

Hu Xiaotian said: "We should always look on the bright side; hardly anyone has seen the princess's true appearance. Even Sir Wu has taken you for the princess, so how could others doubt? Even if someone does doubt, they should value their own lives, right?"

Purple Sandpiper whispered: "Where is the princess now?"

Hu Xiaotian did not answer.

Purple Sandpiper said: "You must have secretly rescued the princess using this incident, right?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "Princess, you're mistaken; you're still here, and I'm still by your side. The most important thing between the two states is the marriage alliance; even if you never return to your natal home, the sovereign won't care. The Seventh Prince of Da Yong won't care what Princess Anping is like; he only cares that he married a princess. Do you think I'm right, Princess?"

Purple Sandpiper bit her lip, seeming still hesitant, finally nodded and said: "Remember this: if you ever dare to harbor harmful thoughts toward me again, I will fight you to the death, mutual destruction."

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "I'm a clay tile, you're porcelain; the princess is a golden branch and jade leaf—not worth my anger." He bowed deeply, stepped back to the tent entrance, lifted the flap, and walked out.

Outside the tent, Zhou Mo had been waiting quietly; seeing Hu Xiaotian come out, he left the tent with him and transmitted via voice: "How is it?"

Hu Xiaotian said: "For now there's no problem; keeping this woman will always be a source of trouble."

Zhou Mo whispered: "Then I'll look for a chance to get rid of her!"

Hu Xiaotian shook his head: "We're in a situation where we can't back out; for now we can't move against her—we'll take it step by step."

Hu Xiaotian came to the campfire; more than thirty surviving warriors sat around it, each expression extremely complex, showing they were burdened with thoughts. Long Xi Yue and Zhan Peng also sat quietly in the crowd; seeing Hu Xiaotian return, Long Xi Yue's eyes lit up.

Hu Xiaotian tried to avoid meeting her gaze, fearing others would see through him; he sat down beside Wu Jing Shan.

Wu Jing Shan's condition had improved a bit; at least for now he'd saved his head, as for tomorrow, who knows! Wu Jing Shan whispered: "Sir Hu, what did the princess say?"

Hu Xiaotian hooked his arm around Wu Jing Shan's neck, leaned to his ear and whispered: "The princess has calmed her anger!"

Wu Jing Shan understood; surely Purple Sandpiper agreed to continue playing the princess's role. Although it couldn't fundamentally solve the problem, at least they'd temporarily gotten past the immediate crisis. He sighed: "Heaven's protection, fortunately the princess is safe and sound; otherwise we'd be unable to atone with myriad deaths." Speaking these fortunate words, his heart felt as heavy as a lead weight; having escaped for a moment, not for a lifetime—if this were exposed, not only would their lives be unsalvageable, they might even face extermination of nine clans.

Hu Xiaotian surveyed the surrounding survivors; among them were friends who shared his innermost feelings, confidantes who had lived and died together, and Wu Jing Shan—this sort of person dragged in helplessly by himself—plus, of course, the loyal aides Wen Boyuan had brought from the capital. Hu Xiaotian then noticed something unusual: not a single one of the two hundred warriors Zhao Wusheng had sent to support them was present. Could they all have drowned in the Yong River? After a moment's thought, that seemed unlikely—those two hundred warriors were all skilled in water; even if there were casualties, they wouldn't be wiped out entirely. A shadow fell over Hu Xiaotian's heart.

It now appears Zhao Wusheng is indeed someone Ji Feihua sent, but his purpose in coming was not to cooperate with me. Zhao Wusheng had long known both vessels would be ambushed; now it seems the mishap in the river's middle is inevitably linked to him—there's an eighty to ninety percent chance that the soldiers he planted among them plotted this sinking.

Recalling Ji Feihua's solemn instructions before leaving the capital, Hu Xiaotian had then believed them; now, upon reflection, he realized that from start to finish Ji Feihua had never truly trusted him, nor placed all her hopes on him—in his plan, someone else was assigned to eliminate Wen Boyuan. The scene of Wen Boyuan being killed underwater remains vivid. Ji Feihua is indeed ruthless: on the surface she entrusted me with the task of killing Wen Boyuan, letting me mistakenly think I had won her absolute trust, while secretly she laid her plans, aiming to achieve two goals with one stone on the Yong River—eliminating both Long Xi Yue and Wen Boyuan. I had been preoccupied with sparring against Wen Boyuan, guarding against his tricks everywhere, never imagining that in the end both of them would be schemed against by others.

By comparison, I still count myself fortunate—at least I escaped alive from the Yong River. That ill-fated Wen Boyuan wasn't so lucky; he was stabbed to death in the Yong River.

Actually, when that assassin appeared, Wen Boyuan was already close to being suffocated by him; that stab was somewhat superfluous. Hu Xiaotian suddenly realized that not only did he know the cause of Wen Boyuan's death, but the assassin did as well; if he were to publicize this, wouldn't I be in trouble? Thinking this, a cold sweat instantly soaked Hu Xiaotian's back.

At this moment Liu Yincai came over, cupped his hands to Hu Xiaotian and Wu Jing Shan, and said: "Gentlemen, my general invites you two to speak in the tent."

Hu Xiaotian nodded as if waking from a dream, but Wu Jing Shan sighed: "My old head's acting up again; it's inconvenient for me to go over, Sir Hu—please convey my respects to General Tang."

Hu Xiaotian knew Wu Jing Shan was afraid; Tang Boxi's temperament was rash and rude, and Wu Jing Shan dreaded dealing with him, so he made an excuse to politely decline. After all, Hu Xiaotian backs everything up; this lad is quick-witted—let him handle any negotiations.

As Hu Xiaotian was leaving, Zhou Mo stood up: "Sir Hu, I'll go with you." This being the Yong military water camp, plus just now Li Chenzhou had for no reason cut down a Dakang warrior on the spot, Zhou Mo couldn't help worrying about Hu Xiaotian's safety—having an extra person along would mean more backup.

Hu Xiaotian smiled: "Don't worry, I'll be right back."

"Take care, sir!" The speaker was actually Zhan Peng; beside him, Long Xi Yue gazed at Hu Xiaotian full of worry. Hu Xiaotian smiled at them, then walked off together with Liu Yincai toward the commander's grand tent.

Inside the grand tent, lights shone brightly; Tang Boxi and Li Chenzhou sat facing each other, the table laid with four small dishes, a jar of fine wine, and four sets of bowl and chopsticks.

Seeing Hu Xiaotian enter the tent, Tang Boxi burst into laughter: "Sir Hu has arrived, hahaha, quick, quick please take a seat!" (To be continued~^~)